Artist UV Resin - has anyone tried?

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I haven't tried it yet so I don't know it's durability or compliance with mediums but I find the video BEREA list funny as the demonstrator talks about how much money he doesn't have to invest for molds and a pressure pot, but he's paying $20 for a 100 gr bottle of this UV resin. Even though grams are weight and resin is sold in gallons, you would be spending around $700 per gallon of this stuff compared to $80 per gallon of Alumilite clear. I guess it all comes down to how many blanks your going to be making and your available space for a pressure tank, mold and air compressor.
 
JohnU said:
I haven't tried it yet so I don't know it's durability or compliance with mediums but I find the video BEREA list funny as the demonstrator talks about how much money he doesn't have to invest for molds and a pressure pot, but he's paying $20 for a 100 gr bottle of this UV resin. Even though grams are weight and resin is sold in gallons, you would be spending around $700 per gallon of this stuff compared to $80 per gallon of Alumilite clear. I guess it all comes down to how many blanks your going to be making and your available space for a pressure tank, mold and air compressor.
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Good point @JohnU. My work computer doesn't have speakers so I couldn't tell what he was saying.
 
I just ordered some. While I do have all the other gear to cast, the appeal to me is being able to do it inside assuming there is no objectionable odor. I've made similar blanks with lower viscosity uv cure resins which came out nice but took longer time to build up. I even have a uv light manifold that can hang over my slow speed turner. Using the slow speed turner while applying the resin should further reduce the amount needed. Always game for a new thing.
 
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I bought some Alumilite UV resin for the wife to try as a gift (and with a coupon). So far the results are mixed. She uses it as a topcoat on some of her stuff with the UV light for UV fingernail polish. It is good but nothing so far makes us think it is great enough to justify the cost. I will be interested in what others find so keep us posted.
 
If you want a casting resin which does not smell, try Liquid Diamond It has absolutely no odor and has a long working time which eliminates the need for a pressure pot. It will work with most dyes, including the Alumilite dyes, and with most casting media. The only drawback that I have found is that you need to wait until the mixed part A and B reaches a temperature of around 90 degrees before adding pearls and other dry pigments. Otherwise the pigments and pearls will settle to the bottom of the mold.
 
I've done a few rings with U V resin.
 

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JohnU said:
I haven't tried it yet so I don't know it's durability or compliance with mediums but I find the video BEREA list funny as the demonstrator talks about how much money he doesn't have to invest for molds and a pressure pot, but he's paying $20 for a 100 gr bottle of this UV resin. Even though grams are weight and resin is sold in gallons, you would be spending around $700 per gallon of this stuff compared to $80 per gallon of Alumilite clear. I guess it all comes down to how many blanks your going to be making and your available space for a pressure tank, mold and air compressor.
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You're right in that comes down to how many blanks you plan to make. The last time I bought Alumilite I bought the smallest amount available which was about $35 plus $15 shipping. Although I've been casting for many years and was one of the first to even make a label cast I wound up several unusable blanks and because my pen making has slowed, I wound up with more than half of the unused resin going to waste. I just measured the amount of resin on a finished sierra tube and it's about 2 grams. Allowing for build up, I suspect I should be able to make a blank with about 4 grams uv resin which means about 25 blanks per bottle or $1 each assuming the shelf life is reasonable. Just nice to have alternatives depending on your production volume.
 
I use another UV resin (Bondic) for affixing watch parts to blanks. It works well for that purpose, but have not yet tried it as a substitute for resin casting. I bought some of the BTW UV resin and plan to give it a go.
 
BRobbins629 said:
You're right in that comes down to how many blanks you plan to make. The last time I bought Alumilite I bought the smallest amount available which was about $35 plus $15 shipping. Although I've been casting for many years and was one of the first to even make a label cast I wound up several unusable blanks and because my pen making has slowed, I wound up with more than half of the unused resin going to waste. I just measured the amount of resin on a finished sierra tube and it's about 2 grams. Allowing for build up, I suspect I should be able to make a blank with about 4 grams uv resin which means about 25 blanks per bottle or $1 each assuming the shelf life is reasonable. Just nice to have alternatives depending on your production volume.
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This could be an ideal use for UV resin. From what I have read it seems to be not well suited for a thicker (think pen blank size) pour or for a final coat (though lure make seem to like it). In between may be the sweet spot.
 
JohnU said:
I haven't tried it yet so I don't know it's durability or compliance with mediums but I find the video BEREA list funny as the demonstrator talks about how much money he doesn't have to invest for molds and a pressure pot, but he's paying $20 for a 100 gr bottle of this UV resin. Even though grams are weight and resin is sold in gallons, you would be spending around $700 per gallon of this stuff compared to $80 per gallon of Alumilite clear. I guess it all comes down to how many blanks your going to be making and your available space for a pressure tank, mold and air compressor.
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TonyL said:
does anyone think it is to be used as a finish?
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I've been wondering about that myself. UV resins are very popular in the fly tying world (of which I am a member) and have been used for years as a finish, as a coating to enhance durability and to hold stuff together. I haven't done a deep dive into the chemical stuff but I'm sure it polymerizes into some sort of plastic, like CA. The big advantage would be in application because it does not cure until exposed to the UV light, giving lots of working time but still cures in seconds when "lit". No more paper towels, gloves and glueing things together that you'd rather not be glued together. It also comes in many viscosities, so building layers is simple.
 
The Alumilite website has a link that shows Lure Makers dipping finished lures into the UV resin then curing it. Afterwards the guy slams a lure into the asphalt with no damage. Seems like a lot of potential. I believe ensuring the out of the UV light is key. Both intensity and within the correct portion of the UV band. Wife is experimenting with her stuff now and has mixed feelings with regards to both cure and bubbles. Heat helps the bubbles and her UV light is an old fingernail Polish curing system.

I am certain when I first joined here about 3 or so years ago, there we a couple of well regarded folks who experimented with it.
 
TonyL said:
I have experimented with Solarez (about 4 different formulas) with varying success. I will not go into detail about all the experimenting but I think a very, very strong - light 250w UVA may be key. I believe Bob in SF uses this one: https://www.cureuv.com/collections/...roducts/low-intensity-uva-handheld-spot-light
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There's been a lot of talk in the fly tying world about lights and getting UV resins to cure completely. Some of the first products to hit the market would leave a sticky residue on the surface no matter how long you expose it to the light, even though the resin was properly hardened. Pretty easy to wipe off the residue with alcohol, but once you did that you could not build another layer. Several products available now have solved that issue. General consensus is that the resin itself and the lights have improved. Solarez is considered one of the better products and will cure completely with no residue when used with their light. There is much talk about lights. All the tyers I know stick with flashlight style lights. I believe a flashlight would work fine for pen finishing, as long as it's appropriate for the resin and thin layers are cures at one time.
 
Thank you. I own their products and light. It cured fine when building a small dome on the head of a fly. If the resin is covered in plastic wrap thereby depriving the immediate surface of oxygen it it cure quickly without any tack. Thanks again.
 
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